A Meta-analysis Study on the Communication Attitudes of People Who Do and Do Not Stutter by Age

Objectives: The present study aimed to compare the communicative attitudes of stuttering groups with the general population using a meta-analysis and to examine the patterns of change in communicative attitudes across different age groups: pre-school, school-age, and adults. Methods: The author conducted a meta-analysis to compare communication attitude scores between people who stutter (PWS) and people who do not stutter (PWNS) from 2000 to June 2022 using domestic and foreign databases. 15 articles meeting the selection criteria were included, with 16 data points extracted. The study aimed to determine the overall effect size of communication attitude scores between groups and to analyze age as a moderator. Results: The overall effect size of the communication attitude scores between the two groups showed a large effect size (g = 2.507) and was statistically significant. Meta ANOVA analysis of group communication attitude scores by age category showed that there was a significant difference in effect size between the three age categories (χ² = 13.53, p < .01). Post-hoc analysis was performed, and there was no significant difference in effect size between the pre-school and school-age groups (χ² = 0.72, p = .40). A large effect size and a statistically significant difference were observed between the school-age and adult groups (χ² = 5.95, p < .05), and a very large effect size and a statistically significant difference were observed between the pre-school and adult groups (χ²=13.52, p < .01). Conclusion: The research findings indicate that individuals who stutter exhibited more negative communicative attitudes compared to the non-stuttering group across all age groups. Particularly during adulthood, the negative communicative attitudes were more pronounced when compared to the other two age groups (pre-school and school-age). Therefore, when providing treatment for stuttering, it is important to not only focus on external behaviors but also incorporate activities that address age-appropriate communicative attitudes.